Young: Warner out of line in this economy

We rarely pass up an opportunity to stick the needle in Suns owner Robert Sarver, the Bidwill family or Ken Kendrick of the Diamondbacks when they go cheap.

We generally have left Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes alone because the guy's team is bleeding something like $30 million a year, and he can't even charge for parking.

Anyway, we understand that these ultimately are businesses they run.

However, we always have figured that, if you aren't willing to pay what it takes to compete, then this should not be your business.

Go open a bank or a mortgage company, where the government will bail you out if you make a mess of it.

That's why, when it comes to money battles in pro sports, The Heat Index typically comes down on the side of the player, especially if that player also happens to be a great person on and off the field.

It also is what makes this whole Kurt Warner situation so bothersome.

As you probably know, the Cardinals offered Warner a two-year contract extension reportedly worth a total of $20 million.

Seeking a two-year, $28 million deal, he did not sign, became a free agent and now is visiting other teams, including the San Francisco 49ers.

"I don't know that he has a choice," Warner's agent, Mark Bartelstein, said.

No choice? Right.

It's a classic agent maneuver, putting the screws to the Cardinals, who are under pressure to keep a Super Bowl team intact.

He knows everybody loves Warner and that the Cardinals would get ripped if they don't pay.

But this is no the time for that stuff.

Not when the people who ultimately make all of those millions available to pro athletes - fans - are hurting so badly.

Not when people are losing their jobs and homes.

Not when businesses large and small are going under.

Not when the very league that allowed Warner to hone his decision-making and polish his quick delivery - the Arena Football League - is on the verge of going belly up.

No, we don't want to hear it right now.

This is no time to be greedy, and that goes for ownership and players.

In fairness to Warner, what he and his teammates pulled off has aided the Cardinals financially in a big way.

Had the Cardinals lost their first playoff game to Atlanta, season-ticket renewals likely would have been dismal in this economy.

And Warner will be 38 in June. Because he had to play his way into the NFL instead of coming in as a high draft pick, he didn't get big money up front.

But everybody is getting squeezed right now.

Franchises throughout pro sports are in a precarious place.

The same businesses that are laying people off, putting employees on furlough or simply closing the doors often are those that spend money on sponsorships, season tickets, luxury suites and promotions.

Even sponsorship deals locked in by long-term contracts could be lost if the companies that signed them end up in bankruptcy.

And many of those contracts were done before the economy really went sour. It will get worse.

Meanwhile, fans are taking a second look at their priorities.

Can they afford those season tickets when the salt mine might hand them an "early-retirement opportunity" any day now?

Is buying an authentic Warner jersey really a good idea when the mortgage payment is overdue?